Up Close and Personal: Critically Analyzing Latina/o Children's Talk Around Immigration

• In Event: Roundtable Session 13
  In Roundtable Session: Immigration, Policy, and Latina/o Students Across Learning Contexts

Abstract

This qualitative study investigates how children of immigrants engaged in a discussion around the topic of immigration. The setting for this study was a 3rd grade classroom during the Spring of the 2012 – 2013 academic year with 20 students. Data was analyzed from a social cultural perspective and critical discourse lens in order to understand participants’ meaning making and talk around issue like immigration. Findings indicated that students engaged with the topic in complex and sophisticated ways, often challenging the narrative of Latino/a immigrant families and their children. The nature of this study highlights how the political debate regarding immigration plays into leveraging literacy pedagogy and agency for children from diverse communities.

Author

• Eliza Allen, University of South Carolina - Columbia